For 'gades The Proof Is Not In The Footballs

July 13, 1986|By Jerry Greene of the Sentinel Staff

The footballs are here.

Circumstantial evidence has been building that indicates the USFL in general and the Orlando Renegades in particular really have no plans for playing football this fall -- whether the young league wins or loses its lawsuit against the nervous NFL.

But the footballs are here.

Yes, 24 USFL footballs have arrived in Orlando. To Renegades publicist Fred Doremus, the balls are symbolic proof that the USFL is alive even if not in the best of health.

''I was so happy to hear about the footballs arriving,'' Doremus said. ''After all, you can't play football without something to hike, can you?''

Doremus is right. You start with a football and build from there. The USFL has its first shipment of footballs -- now all it needs are accessories such as teams, players, coaches, stadiums and, of course, a few fans.

A few fans is exactly what the USFL has right now -- although the Renegades may have more closet fans than most of us think. Despite serious questions concerning the immediate future, the Renegades have renewed 4,022 season tickets from the 18,000 sold last year. And according to Doremus, almost all of the renewed tickets have been purchased from individuals, while local corporations are waiting for proof that the Renegades will play this fall.

Will the Renegades play -- or will those footballs become instant collector items? Here's the situation:

The Orlando Renegades want to play football this fall.

The Orlando Renegades plan to play football this fall.

But the Orlando Renegades, just like the rest of us, do not know if they will have a league. And a football team without a league makes about as much noise as one hand clapping.

Nobody in the USFL will say it, but we all know that if the league loses its lawsuit it also loses its will to live. No victory in the courtroom equates to no season in the fall or ever again.

Even if the USFL wins the antitrust suit, as many observers now suspect, no guarantee exists that a fall season will take place. Suppose the USFL wins but the financial reward is too slight to support another season? Or suppose the USFL wins big, but the NFL decides to fight for years through appeals? Or suppose the USFL wins big and some USFL teams -- but not Orlando -- merge with the NFL?

More supposition than competition.

And there is the circumstantial evidence we mentioned at the start. With the season two months away, why is it that the Baltimore Stars have neither a coach nor a stadium? Why is that the New Jersey Generals haven't decided if they will be the New York Generals? Why is it that the Tampa Bay Bandits are woefully behind on their payments for the use of Tampa Stadium?

Do these teams sound as if they really plan to play football this fall?

No, they do not.

We know it and the Renegades know it. I suspect, consequently, the Renegades have been reluctant to make heavy financial commitments in preparation for a season that may not take place. Why spend a lot of cash, for example, on advertising when it will not have any meaning until everyone knows for sure that those new footballs are going to be used for something other than mantel pieces?

Still, I have been asked, why haven't the Renegades made a serious push at selling season tickets? The Renegades respond that the delay has been caused by a computer failure. In this case it happens to be true, although saying ''our computer is down'' is the modern equivalent to saying ''it's in the mail.''

The truth is that the Renegades could spend $100 million this summer in Orlando and not enhance their chances of playing in the fall.

So they do what they can do. The cheerleaders have been selected and are appearing around town. General Manager Bugsy Engelberg has 65 players under contract and keeps looking for more. Coach Lee Corso keeps polishing his new playbook until it shines. Principal owner Don Dizney appears on the cover of the new Chamber of Commerce magazine, shown holding a Renegades helmet and ignoring that the stadium in the background is empty.